'Made in Europe doesn't just mean the EU': Turkey can drive continent's wind rollout, says minister

Turkey can help turbocharge the European wind rollout and help reduce Chinese “dominance” in the supply chain, says the country’s deputy minister of industry and technology, but only if it gets the foreign investment it needs.

Turkey has “world class” wind power manufacturing facilities and a huge workforce already employed by local and international wind players, said Çetin Ali Dönmez, speaking at the opening of the WindEurope conference in Bilbao.

Turkey could he said become a “big supplier for Europe” in the wind sector.

Europe’s wind sector is facing increasing pressure from Chinese OEMs that, in the face of white-hot domestic competition on pricing, are increasingly setting their sights on the continent with supersized and supercheap turbines that have local players worried.

Europe’s wind manufacturers also have dependencies on components from China for turbines, including rare earth elements. China currently supplies 90% of rare earths globally, and the EU currently imports 98% of its rare earth needs from the country.

But “Made in Europe” does not mean ‘Made in the EU,” stressed Dönmez. “We are a European country.”

Turkey wants to become “a large power, a leading power,” when it comes to the term “Made in Europe,” he said.

When it comes to manufacturing blades and towers for turbines Turkey is “very available,” he said, as well as providing the rare earth minerals that are needed.

The “dominance of China” is a “big problem for all of us" in Europe when it comes to rare earth elements, he said, calling for European countries to work together in investing Turkish mining fields.

Turkey is already dramatically increasing its share in the European wind supply chain, according to a recent report from consultancy Rystad Energy.

Turkey is aiming to have almost 30GW of wind power installed by 2035, including 5GW of offshore wind power.

However, Dönmez stressed the need for more foreign direct investment in Turkey from the EU, in particular the Europe Investment Bank, to help develop the country’s wind sector.

German companies Nordex and Enercon are among the international wind players that have already set up manufacturing plants in Turkey.

Dönmez said Turkey is also “very keen on becoming aligned” with the European Green Deal, which was passed in 2020 to help the bloc reach net zero by 2050.

Turkey, which is currently planning to peak its emissions in 2038 at the latest and hit net zero by 2053, is he said “very ambitious” in wanting to cut its emissions.